Mortuos Suscitare: RW
by Insert Clever Potter Name Here
Summary: Rewrite: Eleven years have passed since the end of the war. On May 2 2009, Harry arrives at work to find a horrible surprise awaits him- and that surprise includes six very dead Order Members, and one very dead DA member. Post-DH, Technically canon until first chapter, M rated for themes.
1. Chapter 1

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

She stumbled through the corridor, searching for Remus. She found him in a quiet corridor, sprawled across the floor, pale and still.

"Remus, no- please no-" Tonks sobbed, falling to her knees beside him. Her heart broke when she realised he wasn't breathing, and he was cold- too cold. "Remus, please, _wake up-_ "

There was a laugh behind her, but at this point, what did she care? Remus was dead, what could she do? She could see the green light lighting up the corridor and knew what was about to happen, and too late, one word entered her mind: _Teddy_.

"No-"

The light struck her, but it definitely didn't feel instantaneous. It burned. Her entire body _burned_ , she felt as if something was being ripped from her chest. But she couldn't scream.

Her body had fallen across Remus', but she could feel herself dying. She could _feel_ the pain. The world became black but the pain didn't vanish. If anything, it was becoming worse, building and building like someone was using the Cruciatus on her.

The pain only got worse, but she couldn't move or open her eyes- was this death? Was this some horrible version of the afterlife?

It was as if years passed, this pain clutching at her body. It was if an eternity passed by, but maybe it had only been hours. Minutes, perhaps.

The pain stopped abruptly, with a voice filling her head, speaking one simple sentence over and over: _Kill Harry Potter._

* * *

 _ **May 4th, 1998**_

Harry stood silently beside Andromeda in St Mungo's. Andromeda had to come and 'officially' identify the bodies, despite the fact everyone knew who they were and despite the fact Andromeda had gone to Hogwarts already. Harry had been there when Andromeda received the letter, and when Andromeda said she couldn't go alone, had offered to go with her.

They were staring at two sheet covered forms, a Healer waiting for Andromeda's permission to pull back the sheets, but Andromeda looked as if she couldn't handle seeing her daughter again.

Andromeda was clutching a bag of the clothes she had chosen for them to buried in, but she made no move to even hand the bag over or officially identify her daughter. Andromeda was staring at the two forms, her eyes slightly unfocused, and Harry began to believe she wasn't even looking at the forms.

"Mrs Tonks, I understand that this is a difficult time for you..." The Healer began slowly, eyes shifting uncertainly between Andromeda and Harry.

Andromeda's eyes snapped up to the Healer, and then she nodded slowly. "I would like to see Remus first, not my daughter." Andromeda said quietly. Harry couldn't blame her, he still remembered the poor woman's scream as she arrived at Hogwarts and was shown her daughter and son in law's bodies.

The Healer nodded, stepping towards one of the beds, and slowly folded down part of the white sheet.

Harry only looked for a moment. He had never seen Remus as pale as he was in that moment, his eyes closed as if he really was just sleeping. The scars seemed to stand out in stark contrast to the pale skin, and Harry had seen enough dead bodies, he couldn't stand the idea of seeing another.

Andromeda's eyes filled with tears. "You already know that's Remus." She said quietly. "Why do I have to do this?"

"I'm sorry, but it's St Mungo's policy that we have to have a family member come to properly identify them and tell us what they wish for the bodies-"

"People." Harry found himself saying. "They're people- not bodies."

The Healer was silent for a moment. "My apologies. We need family members to tell us what they wish we do with their loved ones, burial or cremation."

"Burial." Andromeda said, quickly. "My Dora said cremation was a horrifying idea, and they should be together." And then she nodded towards the second bed. "I suppose I should see my daughter now."

The Healer nodded, pulling the sheet back over Remus' face, and stepping towards the second bed. As the Healer pulled the sheet away, tears hit Andromeda's cheeks. There was Tonks, as sickly pale as Remus, her eyes closed as if she was also simply asleep.

Harry looked away quickly- he really would rather remember them alive, not simply corpses on St Mungo's beds.

"I know it sounds silly, but I was hoping when you- that maybe it wasn't her after all." Andromeda said quietly. When Harry looked up again, Tonks was covered again, and Andromeda was holding the bag out to the Healer. "I- I'd like them to wear these when they're buried."

The Healer nodded, taking the bag.

"There's- for Dora, there's shoes as well." Andromeda said. "I know she'd hate the shoes, but- but they match the dress."

The Healer nodded again.

"And- and I was wondering..." Andromeda continued. "If there was a way to... conceal the bruises and-"

"You won't be able to tell they've fought a battle, I promise." The Healer said, and Andromeda nodded.

"Thank you." Andromeda said.

"We've got forms we need you to sign, to say you've identified the bod- _them_."

Andromeda nodded, and the Healer set down the bag to lead them from the room, where another Healer was at a desk. The second Healer stood, forms in hand. Harry stayed beside Andromeda as she filled out the forms, and Andromeda hesitated when she came to the portion that was asking what names she wanted Tonks buried under.

After a moment, she wrote _Nymphadora Lupin._

* * *

 _ **May 2**_ ** _, 2009_**

"-and Lily needs- Harry, are you listening?" Ginny asked, looking at him intently.

Harry yawned and nodded. "Sure."

Ginny raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm sorry, Gin." Harry said. "It's just- the kids are exhausting, and now with Teddy with us as well- I'm just tired."

"It's understandable." Ginny said, nodding. "But at least you get to get away from them at work, _I_ unfortunately work at home."

Harry smirked. "Would you like to be Head Auror, Mrs Potter?"

Ginny smiled. "Well, I would, but the current Head Auror is a very handsome man and I wouldn't want to take his job away."

"Speaking of handsome Head Aurors, I'll have to leave now if I don't want to be late." Harry said, standing up and picking up his plate and coffee mug. He deposited them in the sink and turned to give Ginny a kiss. "See you this evening?"

"Of course." Ginny said. "But don't be late. You promised Teddy that you two were going to that Quidditch game. To celebrate his-"

"His Hogwarts letter, yes, I'll remember. I'm not letting him down today." Harry said, as he stepped into the fireplace of Grimmauld Place. He nodded to Ginny and disappeared, landing neatly in his office.

He was barely there for more than a few minutes when Hermione Granger(now Hermione Weasley), the Head of Magical Law Enforcement, burst in. "Oh, Harry, finally!" She cried. "I've been waiting, something's happened, Harry-"

"What's going on?" Harry asked. "What are you doing here? You should be at home, with Fabian-"

"Harry, the graves at Hogwarts- they were damaged early this morning." Hermione said, ignoring him completely. "Filch discovered it shortly after dawn when he spotted someone who looked, in his words, 'remarkably and suspiciously like Remus Lupin' heading towards the front gates of Hogwarts. He checked the graves, to see if perhaps it was a relative of someone and-"

"What happened to the graves?" Harry asked, frowning.

Hermione let out a breath. "Some of them are empty."

"How many?" Harry asked.

"Four at Hogwarts."

Harry frowned. " _At Hogwarts_?" He repeated. "Does that mean that other graves were damaged as well, elsewhere?"

"Your parents' graves are empty as well. That report came in shortly after the Hogwarts one. Some Muggle woman was visiting a loved one and noticed that the graves had been dug up. She called the Muggle Police, and it was brought to us."

Harry sank into his desk chair. "Who would do this? Has anyone searched Hogsmeade? Looked for this man that Filch described?"

"That's just it, Harry." Hermione said, slowly. "I sent out a few of your Aurors, and they found him."

"And?" Harry prompted.

"He's in a holding cell downstairs. Harry, I think it _is_ Remus."

"It can't be."

"Come see for yourself. He has the scars, he has Remus' voice- he _looks_ like Remus. He's even wearing the clothes that Remus was buried in, but his eyes, Harry-"

"It could be someone using Polyjuice Potion." Harry said, but his mind was wandering. What if it was Remus?

"Polyjuice won't work if the person you've taken from is dead. That man, if he is taking Polyjuice, should look like an eleven year old corpse." Hermione said quickly and then froze, looking almost sick at the mention of corpses. "Harry, come with me, you'll see. And you can question him, if he'll say anything- but I believe it's him."

"What other graves were disturbed?" Harry asked, after a moment of silence.

"Ron's, for one. Colin and Tonks, as well."

"And no one's spotted them?" Harry asked.

Hermione shook her head. "No reports yet, anyway. I told Dawlish to get patrols out."

Harry stood slowly. "Then we go, together, to question Remus. If it's him, and if he remembers anything, maybe we can figure out what happened."

Hermione nodded and they stepped out of the office, heading for the lifts.

"Head Auror Potter!" A voice demanded. Harry and Hermione turned to see Dawlish heading for them, a roll of parchment in his hand. He looked pale and a little shaken. "Another one has been spotted."

"Who?" Hermione asked.

"Auror Tonks, she was found near the Leaky Cauldron. Auror Savage and I- we got there as soon as we heard."

"Did you see her?" Harry asked immediately.

Dawlish nodded. "She wasn't like herself. We tried to talk to her, she seemed to hear us, but there was something strange about her-"

"Other than the fact she's suddenly _alive_?" Harry asked.

"She was dressed like she was when she was buried. But she _looks_ dead, Potter. No colour to her eyes,-"

"They're just white, right?" Hermione asked. Dawlish nodded. "Like Remus'. Where is she?"

"She walked away from us, and we were pursuing her, but she managed to lose us."

"Remus wasn't walking very fast, how did Tonks get away?" Hermione asked. "They've been dead eleven years, speed and stealth won't be easy for them-"

"She turned down an alley, and when we turned as well, she was gone. We searched the alley but she was nowhere." Dawlish explained. "But she'll be spotted again, they're not exactly hiding from us."

"Right." Harry said. "Dawlish, get a group of Aurors out there. Patrol London, patrol Godric's Hollow and Hogsmeade. If you find _any_ of them, bring them in. Stun them, I don't care. We need to know what happened, and why they've returned."


	2. Chapter 2

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

It was like following a ghost. Dawlish exchanged a look with Savage as they caught a glimpse of the woman who had been prompting strange calls for the Muggle police. She was extremely pale, very thin. She was wearing the dress Dawlish recognised from the open-casket at Tonks' funeral, the light blue material fluttering around her knees as she walked, her footsteps making quiet clicking sounds from the light blue heels she was wearing.

The dark curls were slightly tangled, clumps of mud stuck to the ends. Her dress and skin were also covered in dirt, and Dawlish was sure if she turned to look at them, her face would be dirt covered as well.

"Tonks!" Dawlish called, and Savage frowned at him.

"Just going to _yell at her?_ " He demanded. "What kind of plan is that?"

But she had stopped walking.

"Tonks, we can help you." Dawlish continued, taking a few steps closer.

She turned to look at them, and both men took a step back- her eyes were colourless.

"Tonks?" Dawlish asked, but she simply stood there.

"Tonks, come with us to the Ministry." Savage said.

She gave them a slow smile, and then turned and continued walking.

It took a moment for either man to move- Dawlish felt _ill._ Finally, they continued to follow her, until she turned down an alleyway that they knew had no other exit.

When they turned as well, she was gone.

" _Homenum Revelio_." Dawlish muttered, waving his wand, but nothing happened.

"You can't reveal a presence that isn't human." Savage hissed, and Dawlish glared at him. They walked to the fence that blocked the other end of the alley, but she was nowhere.

She had simply vanished.

* * *

Harry froze, his hand on the bars of the cell. There was no denying the man appeared to be Remus, with minor differences. His hair was darker, he looked younger- almost the Lupin that Harry had met in the forest. But the shocking difference that Harry almost couldn't look at, or look away from, were his eyes. Where there had once been a very light green, was _white_. No iris, no pupil- just _white._

"Harry?" Hermione asked. "Are you alright?"

Harry went to speak but a loud voice interrupted them. "Potter!" Dawlish yelled, and when they turned, Harry gaped. Being dragged between Savage and Williamson was a younger looking Sirius Black- with the same eyes as Remus. Sirius looked up- and Harry wasn't sure if he made eye contact, but he must have seen Harry because he began fighting against Savage and Williamson.

"Potter!" Sirius yelled, his voice surprisingly harsh, finally shoving Savage and Williamson off and heading for Harry. Harry wasn't sure what to expect, but didn't time to draw his wand before Sirius' hand closed around his throat, shoving him against the bars of the cell behind him. An arm wrapped around one of Harry's from behind, and Harry spotted Savage _with_ Dawlish and Williamson, trying to drag Sirius away from Harry.

Just as they pried Sirius' hand off of Harry's neck, he blacked out, barely aware of hitting his head as he fell.

* * *

Ginny was tired. Lily Luna was only a few months old, plus she had two and a half year old Albus and almost-five year old James. The plus side was that she had eleven year old Teddy with her, and he was keeping the boys busy in the sitting room. She looked up as the fireplace flared green, startled to see Harry home so early.

"Harry, I wasn't expecting you yet-" Ginny began but stopped when she saw Hermione at Harry's side."What happened?"

"Harry fainted." Hermione said smoothly, leading him to the table. "We were down by the holding cells, and when he fainted, he hit his head on the bars of one of the cells."

"Fainted?" Ginny asked. "Harry, are you feeling alright?"

"Other than a headache, I'm fine." Harry said, sinking into a chair.

"But are you sick?" Ginny asked, as Hermione took Lily Luna from her. "Why would you faint?"

"You're probably going to want to sit down." Hermione said to Ginny. Ginny looked at Hermione, but listened.

"What are you doing at the Ministry anyway, Hermione? I thought you were-"

"On leave?" Hermione asked. "Yes, I was supposed to be on leave for another week, but this is important. Molly took the kids this morning." Hermione added as Ginny went to speak again.

"Ginny." Harry said, bringing Ginny's attention back to him. "We might need to prepare Teddy for this."

Ginny narrowed her eyes. "Prepare him for _what_?"

"We were supposed to go to Hogwarts, together, tonight before the Quidditch game." Harry explained. "He likes to visit his parents."

"And?" Ginny asked.

"His parents won't be there."

Ginny looked between Harry and Hermione, narrowing her eyes. "And where would they have gone?"

"Well." Hermione said slowly. "Remus is currently _at_ the Ministry, and-"

"Remus? As in Remus Lupin, is at the Ministry?" Ginny asked, in disbelief. She thought for a minute. "You mean someone took their bodies, and you've found at least one?" She asked, feeling almost nauseous at the thought.

"Not exactly." Harry said.

"Then what do you mean?" Ginny asked. Harry and Hermione looked at each other, but before they could answer, the fireplace flared up again and Dawlish appeared.

"We've got Black under control, I don't know what he was doing, but he's been separated from Lupin- together, they kept trying to get by us, and it was getting a little violent." Dawlish said in a quick breath.

"Wait, wait, wait." Ginny said loudly. "What on Earth is he talking about?"

"Well." Harry said this time. "The dead have returned. So far, we've detained two of them but Tonks was sighted earlier near the Leaky Cauldron."

Ginny felt sick. "And- what are Muggles saying about this?"

"Well, I don't know." Harry said.

"They're not saying much about _corpses_ walking the streets?" Ginny asked. Dawlish looked at the floor. "What?" She demanded from him.

"Gin, Ron's gone too." Harry said. "And they don't exactly look like corpses. That's why we're trying to find them, and find out why they've come back-"

"What do you mean, they don't look like corpses?" Ginny demanded. "What do they look like?"

"Well, themselves." Hermione said. "A few differences-"

"And you actually think that it's them." Ginny said. "Not worried about impostors, or anything."

"You wouldn't be able to take Polyjuice if the person you took from has died." Hermione said. "Especially if they've been dead so long. And it wouldn't explain Sirius' return, there's no body to take hair from."

"Hermione." Ginny said, sighing. "Human transfiguration. Did you guys not think about that? We learned it in sixth and seventh year. What if it's a group of Death Eaters who are doing this?"

"It would explain why they both tried to attack me." Harry said slowly.

"They attacked you? Sirius and Remus?" Ginny asked.

"It's why he fainted, or I supposed he was- well, knocked unconscious." Hermione said quietly. "But why? Why would they become the dead? Why not become one of us, we'd be far more useful- and we'd be able to get closer to you."

Dawlish, Harry and Ginny gave Hermione an odd look.

"I'm sorry, but it's true." Hermione responded. "Think about it. Why would a Death Eater become someone who has been dead eleven years? Or thirteen? Or even _twenty seven_?"

"Twenty seven?" Ginny asked.

Harry sighed. "My parents' graves are empty too."

* * *

It felt right, standing in front of Grimmauld Place. She could see it, of course she could, Harry wouldn't have kept the protection after the war. If anything, the only protection left was the charm keeping it hidden from Muggles.

"Miss, are you alright?" An elderly man asked, pausing behind her. She figured he had noticed she was covered in dirt, her dark curls hanging limply against her pale face and shoulders. She turned to him, and his eyes widened as he stared at her colourless eyes. She could almost feel his fear as he took a few steps backward, turned, and walked off quickly. She knew that two of the others had been caught already- but that didn't matter. They had been tasked with a mission- and here she was, facing Harry Potter's house.

She would feel bad, if she had the ability to feel any emotions, that she was waiting for The Boy Who Lived to step out of the house. For his wife, and possibly his children, to witness his death would have had the living-Tonks retreating from the task. She saw a curtain on the second floor flutter, and a boy with blue hair looked out of the window, vanishing a second later. She stared at the window, and one word entered her mind: _Teddy_.

* * *

"Aunt Gin?" Teddy's shaky voice called as he went stomping down the kitchen stairs. He threw open the kitchen door and froze at the sight of all four adults sitting there.

"Are you alright, Teddy?" Ginny asked, her eyes wandering to his pale hair.

"There's someone outside." Teddy said, gesturing up the stairs. "I looked out the window from the sitting room, and-" He broke off, his bottom lip trembling a bit.

"And?" Harry asked, already on his feet.

"It looked like a young Gran, and Mum looked like Gran in all the pictures-" Teddy said, looking at the floor.

"What?" Harry demanded, racing up the stairs. Ginny and Dawlish followed just as fast, as Hermione carried Lily Luna over to Teddy and took his hand, walking up the stairs with him.

"Everything's alright, Teddy." Hermione promised. They reached the sitting room, and Harry was staring out the window.

"That's her." Harry said. "Dawlish, we're going to detain her. Hermione, Ginny, take the kids upstairs. Teddy, go with them."

"What do you mean, it's her?" Teddy demanded, walking to the window to stand next to Harry. "That can't be Mum, you said Mum was-"

"She was, Teddy, she was. Go with Gin and Hermione." Harry commanded. Teddy rolled his eyes but went with Hermione and Ginny and the younger kids.

* * *

Harry stared out of the window. She wasn't moving, and she seemed to be looking exactly where he was standing. Unless the Death Eaters were able to mimic every detail, down to their burial clothes, this wasn't a case of Death Eaters impersonating anyone.

She seemed to be waiting for something, and Harry had a suspicion that it wasn't anyone else but him.


	3. Chapter 3

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

In hindsight, Harry had not thought through his plan with Dawlish. While it was true that Dawlish, despite a few minor fumbles that Harry had witnessed over the many years, was a very capable Auror- there was something about the way Tonks was that had made him freeze, almost too scared to get to close to her. Whether it was because he had known her from the day she began Auror training, and the mere sight of an undead version of her was what bothered him, or what she had said when they approached her.

"I'd say I was sorry about your wife's death, Dawlish, but really I'm not." She said slowly.

Dawlish froze, blinking in confusion. "What did you say about my wife?" He asked, and even Harry was shocked. How would Tonks have known? Belinda Dawlish had died five years after Tonks had, there was no way she should have known.

"Lindy, wasn't it? And a _house fire_? Shame her wizard husband wasn't there, could have saved the poor Muggle. I don't suppose your kids were home?"

Dawlish lunged at her, apparently deciding for a more physical form of detaining the young witch in front of him. Harry would have expected it to work as well. After all, Tonks was a very petite witch- _and_ had been dead for eleven years. But as soon as Dawlish reached her, she had twisted his arm and pinned it behind him.

"Now, Dawlish, how about you sit this one out?" She suggested calmly. "I need Potter, and Potter alone."

"You have me, Tonks." Harry said, holding up his wand. "I can't curse you, right, if I don't have my wand?" He asked, placing the wand on the ground, grateful that there were no Muggles to be seen. He stepped over his wand so that it was behind him.

She shoved Dawlish to the ground. "Don't get up." She demanded, stepping over him. Dawlish wrapped an arm around one of her legs, causing her to trip forward and land on her hands and knees. And suddenly Harry found himself thanking Andromeda for the fact she insisted her daughter wear shoes in her casket, despite the fact no one would see them- after all, the heels couldn't be helping Tonks' constant lack of balance.

Tonks turned over, aiming a good kick to Dawlish's ribs and Dawlish's eyes widened for a split second as he stared at her. Harry reacted fast, grabbing his wand and aiming at her back. "Stupefy!" The red jet hit her directly in between her shoulders blades, and she fell limply to the side.

Harry pocketed his wand, and stepped over her form to help Dawlish up.

"Quite a kicker." Dawlish said, rubbing his ribs. "But Harry- I saw- when she turned around again, her eyes are-"

"Pure white? Like Sirius and Remus, I'd assume-"

"No." Dawlish said. He leaned down, wrapping an arm under Tonks' arms and hoisted her up, lifting one of her eyelids- none too gently, but Harry supposed in a way, Tonks wouldn't really care. And then Harry gaped. Her eyes _had_ been pure white when they had approached her, but now, there was a thin circle where the iris would have met the whites.

"They've changed." Harry commented unnecessarily. "But why?"

"Harry!" Ginny cried, jogging down the stairs from the door. "The Ministry Flooed- they've got another one- didn't say who." She looked at Tonks being supported by Dawlish's arm. "I suppose she was no match for you two, huh?"

"Nah, she got Dawlish good." Harry commented as Dawlish hoisted Tonks up higher to place an arm under her knees. "We'll take her through our fire, detain her separately from the others as well. I just hope no Muggles are watching us, they'll think we've kidnapped some poor woman."

* * *

Alecto Carrow paced. The spell had worked, but she had only wanted four of the people from the Hogwarts Battle. The other three, she couldn't explain. But if it worked, it worked. She wanted Harry Potter dead, for her Master, and she was sure it would work.

It had to. Anyone who rose the dead commanded them. But why, so far, had _four_ of them been detained at the Ministry? Honestly, one was a werewolf, one was an ex-Auror. One had escaped _Azkaban_ before! Three perfectly capable adults and a student, and one by one, they had all gotten detained.

She cursed. It couldn't fall apart, not now. She had three chances left, and three _only_. If they were all found and detained, there was a chance it would be linked back to her. They'd know what she had been doing since her release. She'd go back to Azkaban.

 _No._ If her plan failed, she'd kill Potter herself.

* * *

Harry stared at the cell. It was Ron. He was staring at _Ron_. The redheaded lanky, freckled covered boy was supposed to be a few months older than him. _Older._ Instead he was younger, he was still seventeen. Still young. Nothing had changed between his death and now, except for the thing that changed for everyone else.

"Potter, I hate to say it." Dawlish said, appearing.

"Maybe don't."

"We won't be able to detain all seven." Dawlish continued anyway. "We don't have enough cells."

Harry cursed under his breath. It was true. Six graves had been empty, and Sirius had shown up. They had five holding cells. _Five._

"Right." Harry said. "We need to put some of them together. We need a cell left empty, in case we need it later."

"Put them together?" Dawlish asked, frowning.

"Yes. Those who didn't know each other while alive, maybe that'll be a good idea. Colin and my Mum can be in Tonks' cell- there's no way the three of them ever met. Dad, in with Ron."

"I said, where's my wife?" A loud voice demanded at the end of the row. Harry and Dawlish turned to see the Watch-Wizard standing there with wide eyes. "My son! Where is he?" The voice demanded, louder. Harry made his way down to the voice. He froze a few steps away. Remus Lupin was clutching a bar of the cell in one hand, reaching for the Watch-Wizard with the other. Harry stared- Remus' eyes were his own. "Where are they? Answer me!"

There was a scream from the other end of the long hallway. Harry turned to see Dawlish rushing forward to help Savage and Williamson, who were pulling a young redhead through the door. The woman looked up and Harry felt like he might faint. His mother was struggling, screaming and looking around with bright green eyes.

"Keep her separate!" Harry demanded. "Put her by herself, not with Tonks!" Now that at _least_ two had seemingly become themselves again, he wasn't sure that any of them should be together. But now he was down to no empty cells.

Dawlish nodded, helping the other two drag Lily into the empty cell. Harry felt sick. What was going on? These people- _his friends and family_ were returning, and it seemed one by one- they were becoming themselves again.

"Head Auror Potter?" The Watch-Wizard asked, appearing beside him. Harry looked over at him, weakly. "Do you need to sit down? You look faint-"

Harry shook his head. "No, I need to find out what's going on." Harry said quietly. His eyes wandered back to the now quiet cell that held Remus Lupin. He walked to the cell, standing in front of the bars. Remus had sunk onto the bench, his head in his hands, muttering to himself.

"Remus Lupin?" Harry asked. Remus' head snapped up and his eyes widened.

"Who are you? What have you done to my family?"

Harry took a deep breath, taking on a tone of professionalism. "I am Head Auror Harry Potter. I have questions for you."


	4. Chapter 4

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

"You can't be Harry." Remus said quietly. Harry opened the cell door and slipped into the cell, closing the door behind him.

"I am. Ask me anything." Harry said. "Anything you want."

"Your Patronus?" Remus asked.

"A stag." Harry said, pulling out his wand. " _Expecto Patronum!_ " The stag appeared, turning in front of Harry and vanishing.

Remus still seemed confused. "But you're-"

"Older, I know. I turn twenty nine in a couple of months." Harry said. "Remus, I need to ask you something. To make sure you're... well, you."

Remus nodded.

"When, and where, did we meet?"

"The first time I remember, or the first you'd remember?"

"The one I'd remember." Harry said.

"In 1993, on the Hogwarts Express." Remus said. "Dementors boarded the train, looking for Sirius Black."

Harry exhaled. "It's really you." He said, sitting on the bench as well.

Remus looked over at him. "What happened? To me?"

"Eleven years ago, today, there was a battle." Harry said, and Remus nodded. "You were killed, along with fifty others. And four of you are back, I need to ask you what you remember."

"Dora." Remus said slowly. "What did she do, when I was gone?"

Harry rubbed the back of his neck. "Remus..." Harry said gently. "Tonks died too."

Remus stared at Harry in horror. "When?" Remus demanded. ''How long after...?"

"Remus, she was found with you."

"She was there? At the battle?"

"You didn't know?" Harry asked, his heart dropping. "She never found you in time?"

"Who raised Teddy?"

"Andromeda, for a while. He's with me and Ginny now. Got his Hogwarts letter three weeks ago."

"Is he-"

"He has a few... wolfish qualities." Harry explained. "Remus, I need to ask you questions."

Remus nodded absently.

"What do you remember?"

"Pain." Remus said quietly.

 _ **Dolohov had an advantage on Remus, and he knew it. It had been stupid to arrive. The second Kingsley spotted him in the Hog's Head, he had rushed to Remus, saying he hadn't meant for a message to go to him and that he should go home, back to his wife and son.**_

 _ **And Remus wished he had listened. For once he wished he had been the coward of their group, the coward Harry had called him. Unfortunately, he wasn't. So he dueled, throwing every curse he could think of at Dolohov.**_

 _ **But Dolohov was faster, infinitely more skilled, and hadn't just spent the last eight months in hiding. The purple flame ripped across Remus' chest before he could block it, and he fell, the pain spreading quickly. He couldn't breathe, his vision was darkening. No, no, he couldn't be dying. He was supposed to go home, go back to Dora, to Teddy.**_

 _ **No. No. This wasn't right. He knew it was too late when he could no longer see or hear the battle anymore. But why did the pain remain? It felt like eternity, the pain wracking his body, the pain becoming worse and worse until-** Kill Harry Potter. **The voice filled his head, and he wanted to listen, he did. He had to listen. He had to kill Harry.**_

"So you heard a voice?" Harry asked after a moment. "Did you recognise it?"

"Yes." Remus said quietly. "But I can't remember a name."

Harry was silent for a moment. "You're not, uh, going to kill me, are you?" He asked.

Remus smirked. "No."

Harry nodded slowly. "That's what I figured."

"How many came back?" Remus asked after a minute.

"Seven, we assume."

"Assume?"

"Six graves were empty, but Sirius came back too, and he didn't have a body to return to. We need to know who did this, and how." Harry explained.

"Who else?"

"My parents, so far we just have Mum here. Ron and Sirius are here as well, and Tonks."

Remus went to say something, but Harry held up a hand. "You can't see her or the others, not yet. They're not themselves, not like you are."

Remus nodded but looked disappointed all the same.

"We're trying to find the other two- Dad and Colin, if Colin returned, we don't know yet. But if Mum's here, I feel like I can safely assume Dad's back too-"

"James, look at me!" His mother's voice was yelling. "James, please!"

Remus paled. "Lily?"

But Harry wasn't listening. He had already stood up, swinging open the cell door and heading down the hallway as the cell door slammed shut behind him. He stopped as soon as he saw the scene in front of him.

It was his father, being held up by two Aurors. He was unconscious, and Harry looked around. They didn't have an empty cell, was putting him with someone else going to be safe?

"Put him with Ron." Harry finally said. "Dawlish!"

Dawlish looked up from where he was leaning over the desk, jotting notes down.

"We need to do something here. My Mum, I saw her, she has her own eyes again- and she's clearly asking for Dad. Go talk with her, calm her down, and I'll talk to Remus again- we'll put them together. It'll leave a cell open for if we find Colin or need it for something else." Harry explained. "Oh, Merlin." He muttered, staring over Dawlish's shoulder.

The Minister of Magic had arrived.

"Minister!" Harry greeted, standing in front of one of the cells before Kingsley could properly see who they were dealing with. "What brings you here?"

"Well, I was in the Auror department, but there are very few Aurors there." Kingsley responded. "Where are they all?"

"Around London, some in Hogsmeade, some at Hogwarts." Harry reeled off.

"Why?" Kingsley inquired.

"Well, there was an incident this morning and we're trying to-"

"Kingsley Shacklebolt." A voice said from behind Harry. Harry turned to see Sirius leaning against the bars of his cell, his eyes the same grey that Harry had come to know.

"Is that-" Kingsley asked, stepping by Harry. "Sirius Black? In the Ministry?"

"Yes." Harry said.

Sirius was staring at Harry now, frowning, looking like he wanted to ask a question but didn't really want the answer.

"How is this possible?" Kingsley asked Harry.

"Well, we're trying to find out. He wasn't like that earlier." Harry explained. "I'll show you."

He stepped over to the cell where Dawlish had left Tonks, thankful that she was still Stunned for now.

"Oh, _Merlin_." Kingsley exhaled behind him. Harry opened the cell door and gestured Kingsley through. "Potter, you can't be bringing dead bodies in here."

"She's not dead, trust me. Ask Dawlish." Harry said. "She's just- there's something strange."

Harry drew out his wand, aiming it at Tonks. " _Re_ _nnervate_."

Her eyes fluttered open, and Harry didn't know whether to feel relieved or not. They were her eyes, her dark grey that he had seen only a few times. She sat up quickly, panicked, and was on her feet just as fast, her back against the back wall of the cell. She looked exactly like she had when Harry had taken Andromeda to Hogwarts to claim the body- with the exception of a distinct lack of bruises or marks of battle. Her eyes were wide as she stared at him.

"Who are you?" She demanded, her voice slightly hoarse.

"Tonks, calm down." Harry said, taking a step forward.

"I'm not going to calm down!" She snapped, reaching down and pulling off one of her shoes, holding it in front of her as if she intended to use it as a weapon. "Who are you?"

"It's me, it's Harry- and Kingsley." Harry said slowly.

She was shaking her head frantically. "No, no it's not, you're too _old_!"

Kingsley laughed slightly behind Harry, and Harry smirked. "Well, technically, I'm only 3 years older than you right now." Harry said slowly. "We're gonna give you a minute, just to calm down, alright?"

They left the cell. "That's not what I wanted to show you." Harry said to Kingsley. "When we first found her, she wasn't herself." He looked up and down the row of cells, and then nodded. "Right, we'll try Ron and Dad."

Kingsley followed Harry. They stopped outside the cell where James and Ron were. Ron was sitting on the bench, staring at the opposite wall, and his eyes were still blank. James was still unconscious.

"That's what I meant. Look at Ron's eyes."

Kingsley was silent for a minute. "And he doesn't know he's Ron?"

"I don't think so, no."

"And the others?"

"You saw it, most of them know." Harry explained. "And judging by Tonks' reaction, it's not going to be an easy adjustment for most of them. I mean, I'm supposed to younger than her- and I'm definitely not. She probably expected to see me as a teenager still. And my parents- I'm older than my own parents, Kingsley." Harry said, grimacing. "Remus seemed okay when I answered questions for him, but we can't be sure that the rest of them will be."

"If they are all becoming themselves again, we can't keep them locked up." Kingsley said. "It wouldn't be right,-"

"Kingsley, half of their houses are gone. Mum and Dad's was destroyed. Andromeda sold their house, she lives in a one bedroom flat now. But-''

"We'll house them with other members of the Order. It could help them adjust."

"I was going to suggest something else." Harry said. "We take them all to Grimmauld."

"Sirius hated that house." Kingsley said with a frown.

"We need to help them adjust, Kingsley. And most of them know Grimmauld as Order Headquarters."

Kingsley nodded slowly. "And will Ginny be okay with this? I mean, you have four children living in Grimmauld, how will she react to this?"

"I should talk to her about it." Harry said. "We'll leave them here tonight. We're still missing Colin, his grave was empty as well. I'll have Aurors searching for him."

Kingsley nodded again. "Do you want me to speak to Tonks? Once she's calmed down a bit, I mean. Perhaps someone who knows her well may help calm her down."

"If you feel it's safe enough to do so."

* * *

"Harry, I don't know." Ginny said. "What if they're not the same people we knew? And the kids, _and Teddy_. How will they feel?"

"Teddy's the only one old enough to really understand who these people are, Gin."

"And how is he going to feel when his _parents_ walk through the door?" She asked.

"We can talk to him."

"And what if it's not really them? What if it is some terrible joke of some sort?" Ginny asked.

"I asked Remus questions, and he answered each and every one accurately." Harry answered.

Ginny sighed, sitting across from him at the table. "Harry, you've always told me that no spell awaken the dead. This shouldn't be possible, it shouldn't be _them._ "

Harry nodded. "I know, but I think it is."


	5. Chapter 5

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

Harry barely slept that night. He had been distracted through the entire Quidditch game, he wasn't actually even sure who won, but he didn't want to cancel on Teddy- and it had been hard enough to say they weren't going to Hogwarts that day.

Harry was up hours before his usual time, and was heading down to the kitchen when he noticed the library door was open slightly, and there was the slight glow of a lamp.

He turned, pushing the door open slowly. Teddy was sitting at the desk, hunched over a book.

"Teddy?" Harry asked.

Teddy jumped, slamming the book closed. He stood quickly, turning and facing Harry. "Wotcher, Harry." Teddy said casually.

"It's three in the morning." Harry began. "What- uh, what are you doing?"

"I couldn't sleep." Teddy said quietly, and Harry nodded slowly.

"So, you're reading?" Harry asked. "What were you reading?"

"It was nothing."

Harry reached over Teddy's head- he was lucky, for now, that Teddy was still short, although he wasn't sure Teddy would remain short for long- and picked the book up. _Interview with the Inferi_ by _Gilderoy Lockhart_.

Harry resisted the urge to laugh. "Where did you get this?"

Teddy mumbled something.

"I can't hear you if you mumble, Ted."

"Hermione."

" _Hermione_ gave this to you?" Harry asked. "When?"

"After you went back to the Ministry." Teddy said, staring at the carpet. "I asked her about what was going on, and she said maybe this book would help-"

 _Oh Merlin._ Harry thought to himself, sighing. _I'm going to have to yell at Hermione Granger._

"Teddy, why did Hermione give _this_ book to you?"

"She said maybe it'd explain what I saw earlier."

Harry sighed again. He knelt in front of Teddy. "What you saw earlier, Ted, it's going to be solved. Your mother is not an Inferius."

"Promise?" Teddy asked, staring at Harry.

"I promise." Harry said. He ruffled Teddy's brown hair, kissing the top of his head as he stood. While Teddy had reached the age of shooing Harry away when he did this, he didn't say a thing this time. "You should get some sleep, Teddy, you _need_ to get sleep."

Teddy nodded, walking towards the door of the library.

"Teddy?"

Teddy turned to look at Harry. "Your parents miss you very much, you know."

* * *

And it was true. It was the first thing either of them demanded from Harry as soon as he reached the cells. Remus had asked for Tonks and Teddy, while Tonks asked for Remus and Teddy. At that moment, he almost began to dislike the cell designs the Ministry had- there were three thick concrete walls in the cells, and the doors were the only bars. Harry realised that none of them must have known who all came back with them, except for Ron and James because they had been stuck together all night.

According to Dawlish, who had been working the night, Colin was found wandering confused and disoriented in Diagon Alley. How two of the four people buried in Hogwarts had been found in _London_ , Harry didn't understand.

He wasn't sure where the rest had been found, and made a mental note to ask. Perhaps there was a reason behind where everyone was found. But before he could do anything, he had to confront Hermione.

He knocked on her office door, and a moment later the door swung open. She was sitting at her desk, writing on a piece of parchment. She looked up, and before Harry could say anything, she spoke.

"What time were we in the boat house?" She asked.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"At the battle." Hermione prompted. "Ron died nearly twenty minutes before we went to the boathouse. What time was that?"

"I don't know." Harry said. "Why?"

"I'm creating a timeline." Hermione said. "Of the people that returned. It's easy, for some of them. We know James died before Lily, and they were gone for nearly 15 years before Sirius died- and then we reach the battle, and I don't know what order the four died in."

"Colin would have been last." Harry said. "Neville said Colin died right before Voldemort called for the hour of peace."

"That leaves me with three deaths that we don't know. We only know Remus died before Tonks, because she was found laying over his body. But did Remus die before Ron, or did Tonks die before Ron? Or did Remus die, and then Ron, and then Tonks? Or was Ron before either one?"

"No, Remus was dead before Ron was."

"How do you know?" Hermione asked.

"Going off of what Kingsley told me. Remus was one of the earliest losses."

Hermione nodded and scribbled it down. "So that leaves Tonks and Ron."

"Well, Tonks was- she was cold by the time they found her-"

"And Ron wasn't." Hermione said. "I remember Molly saying-"

"He's still warm, can't we save him?" Harry repeated, nodding slowly. "Tonks must have been before Ron. Which leaves Ron before Colin."

Hermione nodded again. "I'll double check their files and details of deaths to make sure this is right."

"Why do you need this?" Harry asked.

"Just a theory I have." Hermione responded simply. "Anyway, why'd you come?"

"I have an issue with the book you gave Teddy."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Harry stepped forward, dropping the book onto her desk with a loud thud. "Lockhart. You gave him a _Lockhart_ book. About Inferi. What is wrong with you?" Harry demanded, his voice a little louder than he expected. "He saw his dead mother yesterday, Hermione. Couldn't sleep last night because of it. And you gave him a book that basically called her an animated corpse! What on Merlin's Green Earth possessed you to do that? He's a kid, he shouldn't be reading these things! Even if they were written by an incompetent fraud!"

Hermione rose slowly. "Now you listen to me, Harry James Potter." She said, harshly. "He was terrified yesterday. He asked me what was going on, I said I wasn't sure. _He's_ the one who mentioned Inferi. Perhaps you should have cleaned that library better than you did, because he's read some terribly dark books in there. Don't you dare try to lay the blame on me. Did you even open this book? Read a single word it said? No? Of course not, _you don't read._ You're Harry Potter, why would you need to read? You can just get someone else to do the reading for you!"

Harry's eyes widened as she stepped around the desk, and she picked up the book.

"This book is the best thing for Teddy right now." Hermione continued. "It's literally called _Interview with an Inferi_. It doesn't describe them as they truly are, they're described like something out a Muggle Children's story. Capable of love, capable of feeling. Undead, but not violent and not deadly. Lockhart was a fraud, but honestly, Harry, at least _I_ tried to help Teddy yesterday."

"I tried-"

"You didn't. You sent him from the room like he was an infant. You're right, he saw his dead mother. He deserved an explanation. A _proper_ explanation."

"I didn't have one!" Harry said defensively. "What should I have said? 'Oh, Teddy, yeah, that's your dead mother, back from the grave, wearing the same bloody clothes as she was when we stuck her in the coffin!'?"

"You could have told him that someone did some Dark Magic, some unexplained Dark Magic. He was terrified! He knows far too much, from listening to _your_ stories. You need to give him credit, he could have understand if you had told him."

"Yet, you gave him an old fraud's book." Harry commented. He didn't have time to react when she swung the book, smacking him on the head with it. Not too hard, but hard enough for him to step back in shock.

"Read the damn book, Harry." She said, shoving it into his hands. "Go on! Open to any page, any page at all, and read a damned passage!"

Harry didn't want another smack, so he flipped open the book to a random page and began to read.

 _Despite what people have been saying about Inferi, I found that it's quite simple to interact with one. In fact, I became quite friendly with one! I can't take all the credit of course, but I'm sure my smile had something to do with it! The Inferius I met, who I shall call Gertrude, was in fact a very loving creature. She never knew who animated her corpse after her untimely death nearly ten years ago, but she definitely hasn't stop living since! I was happy to speak with her, and learn she even reconciled with her husband- and their children- from before her death. It's shame, really, I did feel like she was quite interested in me- but, it's no surprise. After all, I did win_ _Witch Weekly's_ _Most Charming Smile Award 3 times in a row. So far._

Harry closed the book, sighing. "I'm not sure what, or who, Lockhart was interviewing, but it wasn't an Inferius."

Hermione snorted. "I mean, it's probably not even what happened. But perhaps Lockhart's lack of intelligent identifying of a creature could help. It's better than Teddy reading what Inferi _really_ are, because then there would be issues."

"They keep asking for him." Harry said. "I went down there, before I came here. Everyone's aware, and themselves. And all Remus or Tonks will ask about is each other or Teddy."

"You haven't let them see each other?" Hermione asked. "Not even your parents? Are they all separated?''

"Well, not all. We had to put Dad in with Ron-"

"Harry, let them see each other." Hermione said, frowning. "They deserve that much. Use the meeting room in the Auror department, have the Aurors escort them there. Let them all see each other, don't keep them locked up."

"We were planning on taking them all to Grimmauld. Ginny agreed, if they're themselves, they need somewhere to go, and we have the room."

"Right, but first, let them all interact with each other first. If they remain themselves when they're all together, then it's simple- take them to Grimmauld."

"And if they don't?" Harry asked.

"Azkaban, until we figure out what happened."


	6. Chapter 6

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

Alecto screamed in frustration. What had gone wrong? Why did they become themselves, instead of remaining under _her_ control? She wanted Potter dead, and all _seven_ of her chances were gone. She read over the page for what felt like the umpteenth time. There had to be an answer, there just had to be.

She even turned the page, but it was just the next spell- until she noticed two pages were stuck together. _Oh, Merlin, what did she miss?_

She slowly unstuck the two pages, hoping they didn't tear. They didn't, but her frustration only grew when she read the pages. She had apparently missed the part where her control would wane if those being controlled were exposed to someone familiar, someone who knew them well. That had been her problem- they all knew each other, they all knew Potter. Of course her control was broken, she had sent Potter's _friends_ after him.

If she wanted this to work, she needed to redo the spell- but with someone who hated Potter as much as she did. Or, she could take it a step further, and bring back someone who never even met Potter. Perhaps Muggles did have a use after death.

* * *

"Right." Harry said, looking at the Aurors he had gathered. "Magical Law Enforcement needs those holding cells empty. And, as it was pointed out to me, we can't keep them locked up forever. So far, from what a few of us have seen, this is real. These are people who have come back from the dead. Why, and how, we don't know. We might never know, but the fact remains, we can't keep them hidden forever. I'll be assigning a pair of you to each person, to escort up here to this meeting room. Try to use the lifts that don't directly pass the atrium, it'll be less crowded, and there's less of a chance of any outsider seeing this. Until I can issue a statement, we need to keep this quiet."

He listed off the pairs, and the times they'd go- he wanted each person moved separately, to draw as little attention as possible. And then he waited, because he figured perhaps a familiar face waiting for them would be the best thing.

Ron was the first one to be brought in, and for a couple of moments, neither Harry nor Ron spoke. They just sat at the long table, staring at the other.

"This is bloody strange." Ron finally said.

"It's definitely not normal." Harry said.

"You're married, then." Ron said, pointing at Harry's hand.

"Yes." Harry said. "Three kids, youngest was born a few months ago."

"Hermione?" Ron asked.

Harry shook his head and he could see Ron relax. He knew his next words would possibly change this very quickly. "I married Ginny." Harry said.

Whether or not Ron wanted to say anything, it didn't matter. The door opened again, and Tonks appeared with Dawlish and Williamson.

"Still an Auror, then?" Ron asked her, and then he noticed her mud covered dress, and seemed to slowly be putting the pieces together.

Tonks shook her head as she sat down as well, and Dawlish and Williamson disappeared. "No, I'm- uh, well-"

"Like you, Ron." Harry said. "Tonks was killed and brought back as well."

"Oh." Ron said. "How?" He asked Tonks.

"Killing Curse, and you?"

"An explosion, a wall collapsed." Ron said.

"So we know the common factor isn't how you guys were killed." Harry said. "The dates of death aren't even a common factor-"

"How many others are there?" Tonks asked.

"Seven in total." Harry responded. "Four from the battle, and three from before the battle.''

"Harry, can I ask- how's Mum?" Tonks asked. "How did she-?"

"Handle things? Surprisingly well. She's living in London now, closer to us, so she can see Teddy as often as she likes." Harry explained.

Tonks frowned. "Living in London?" Tonks asked. "And Teddy's with you?"

"She got sick a couple years back." Harry explained. "And Teddy spent a lot of time with us anyway, we offered to take him in- and they both agreed. She sold the house shortly afterward."

" _Sold it_?" Tonks asked in disbelief. "But she lived there-"

"For nearly 40 years." Harry said. "I know, but I think she was struggling to continue living there alone, Tonks."

The door opened again and Tonks had moved before Harry even spotted Remus.

"Dora!" Remus cried in relief as she collided with him, her arms around his neck. He stepped back from her, his hands on her waist. The Aurors that had been with Remus had slipped back out of the room with a nod at Harry. "Why were you there? I asked you to stay-" Remus began.

"I would have lost you if I had stayed, Remus." Tonks said.

"But Teddy lost us both."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"He's a good kid." Harry said. They turned to look at him, and sank into chairs.

"Tell us about him?" Tonks asked.

"He got his Hogwarts letter a few weeks ago, I'm sure he's already read all the textbooks already." Harry said. Tonks had smirked towards Remus, who shrugged back. "He loses control morphing sometimes still, but he's gotten really good at controlling it most of the time. It's useful when he can't control it, though, gives us an idea about how he's feeling."

"And otherwise? He's-" Remus began, and then broke off, and Tonks squeezed his hand gently.

"Do you need to track the moons?" Tonks asked.

"No." Harry said quickly, and Remus smiled brightly.

"Can I just ask-" Ron began. "Who else died, and who else came back?"

"Over fifty people died in the Final Battle, but only four came back. You three, and Colin Creevey." Harry explained.

"You said that seven people came back." Tonks said, just as the door opened again, and Sirius entered with two Aurors.

"Moony!" Sirius' loud voice boomed as Remus stood to accept a tight brotherly embrace from Sirius. He stepped around Remus, and stared at Harry. "Dawlish explained to me, and King spoke to me for a while last night. And I just- look at you, Harry."

Harry stood as Sirius spread his arms and Harry gratefully accepted a hug. "I'd say you look like your father, but you've probably-"

"Heard it too many times, yeah." Harry said with a smirk as they stepped apart.

"And Nymphadora." Sirius said. "Little over-dressed for work, aren't you?"

"Sirius." Harry said. "Everyone in this room, except for me, died."

Sirius looked around, and noticed Ron. "How?"

"Did Kingsley tell you about the battle?" Harry asked.

"Yes, he said four of the fifty were back, but he didn't say who." Sirius said. "How?" He asked again.

"Dolohov." Remus answered.

"I don't actually know who got me." Tonks said.

"A wall collapsed." Ron replied.

The door opened again, and this time Colin was brought in. He was a short boy, even for sixteen, and he looked at Harry with wide eyes that reminded Harry of second year.

"Dawlish, just bring the next two together? I think, even separately, they're bound to draw attention." Harry said to Dawlish, who gave him a nod and disappeared.

"Hiya, Colin." Harry said as Colin sank into a chair. "Did anyone speak with you last night?"

Colin nodded. "I think his name was John, he said."

"So, from what I'm hearing, one of two people spoke to most of you- either Dawlish or Kingsley." Harry said slowly. "Now, we're waiting for two more people, and then-"

Harry broke off as the door opened and Hermione slipped in. "Harry, there you are!" She said. "First off, I will apologise for hitting you with the book."

The others seemed mildly intrigued by this.

"Second, I won't apologise for _giving_ him the book. It wasn't meant to be something factual for him to read, merely a distraction to keep him from combing your library and finding something worse." She continued. "Anyways, I think I found something-" She froze, finally noticing Ron. "Ron."

Ron smiled a bit. "Hi, Hermione."

Hermione looked around. "Harry, where are-"

"They'll be here. I had my Aurors move them all separately, so we didn't draw attention to this situation." Harry explained.

" _Your_ Aurors?" Ron asked, and he and Sirius stared at Harry.

"I've been Head Auror for nearly five years." Harry said. "Dawlish is my Deputy."

"Head Auror- wow. And you, Hermione?" Tonks asked. "You're not wearing Auror robes, so-"

"I'm Head of Magical Law Enforcement." Hermione explained.

"She's my boss." Harry said with a grin.

"And? Are you married as well?" Tonks asked. "Or, are you two-" She asked, gesturing between them.

"No." Harry said quickly, as Hermione shook her head quickly. "I married Ginny."

"I married Fred." Hermione added.

"Fred _Weasley_?" Sirius asked in disbelief.

"Yes, we have a son and a daughter. Harry has two sons, and one daughter." Hermione said.

"And the others?" Ron asked.

"Bill and Fleur have three kids- two girls, one boy. Charlie hasn't married, but I do know Molly still hopes. Percy married a Muggle girl named Audrey, they have twin girls. George married Angelina, they have one boy and one girl. And of course, Teddy will spend nights with all of us every once in a while."

Remus and Tonks exchanged glances.

Sirius frowned. "Who's Teddy?"

"Our son." Remus said.

"Our son- as in-" Sirius began, looking at him and Tonks. "I bloody knew it! You two were shagging!"

"No, Sirius, we weren't. Believe me, we were not." Tonks said quickly.

"Oh, really? Then who is Teddy?" Sirius challenged.

"They weren't together until 1997." Hermione said as Remus' cheeks were slowly getting more red and she wanted to cut off the impending- and very awkward- conversation. "Teddy was born in April of 1998."

Harry cleared his throat. "Remus, Sirius, I did want to warn you before the next two came in." Harry said. "Four of you came back after dying at the same battle. Sirius came back after dying in 1996. And my parents came back as well, as you know, Remus."

"No, they didn't." Sirius said.

"Yes, they did." Harry said. At that moment, the door opened one last time, and James and Lily Potter walked into the room.

Sirius and Remus rose slowly, silently staring at the pair.

"Prongs." Sirius said, his voice a hoarse whisper. "Lily."

James gave Sirius a half smile. "Hi, Pads. Hi, Moony."

Sirius and Remus rushed around the table, clutching the pair in tight hugs. Hermione was smiling, watching Sirius clutching at James' face, memorising it- as if it were a dream and James would vanish. And Lily was fussing over Remus' scars, new ones she hadn't seen.

And then they saw Harry. Sirius and Remus let them walk by, and they stood in front of Harry, smiling.

"Harry, you're not the boy I remember." Lily said, holding out her arms. Harry stepped forward, accepting the hug from his parents. It was nice- it was something he always wished for.

He had his parents, and Teddy had his- and the Weasleys had Ron, and Andromeda had her daughter back, and Dennis would get Colin back. And Remus and Sirius and James all had each other.

Everything was okay, Harry knew it.


	7. Chapter 7

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

"I know this is strange." Harry said, looking around at them all. "I'm not even sure how _I_ feel about this yet."

"Well, I feel confused." Sirius said. "You're older than half of us, and it should be the other way around-"

"Well he's not older than you." Tonks commented and Lily snorted.

"Right." Harry said. "I should be the youngest one here, aside from Colin. Instead, you have all skipped out on decades of aging. So, leaving _that_ behind-"

"Can we see our families?" Colin piped up.

"I am going to plan for that, Colin, yes." Harry said. "However, there have been significant changes since your deaths, and people have agreed with me that perhaps we need to keep you all together so we can help you adapt."

"We think it's best that you all remain in one location." Hermione said.

"Not St Mungo's, right?" Sirius asked. "Or Azkaban?"

"I promise, no Azkaban and no St Mungo's." Harry said.

"However, I do think perhaps a Healer seeing all of you might be beneficial. Give us an idea about what your current conditions might be." Hermione interjected. "And then we'll go to Grimmauld-"

"Grimmauld?" Sirius asked, his face darkening. "No, Harry, don't-"

"It's where I live. " Harry explained. "The boys share a room, Lily- _my_ Lily has a room beside Gin and I. Teddy's in Sirius' old room, but there are plenty of rooms left empty."

"I'm not living there again." Sirius said.

"It's been changed." Harry said. "We got it entirely Dark Magic free, the portrait of your mother is in the attic-"

"You got rid of it?" Tonks asked. "How?"

Harry nodded. "Took a while, but Teddy kept disturbing it so we had to blast the damned thing off the wall. Took a while to fix the wall there, but-"

"Teddy kept disturbing it?" Remus asked, smirking. "Sound familiar?" He asked, looking at Tonks.

"To be fair, umbrella stands were not involved." Harry continued.

"I'm sorry." Lily interrupted. "Who's Teddy?"

"Moony had a son. With Nymphadora." Sirius said with a wicked grin.

Lily's face lit up and James grinned too. "Well, Remus, I knew you'd find a nice girl." Lily said simply.

"She's not a nice girl." Sirius said, earning a kick from Tonks beneath the table. "Proves my point right there." Sirius commented, reaching down to rub his shin. "Please get rid of those damned shoes, Nymphadora!"

"Don't call me that!"

"Well, _I_ like her." Lily decided. "And Harry, what about you? Who's Gin?"

"My sister." Ron grumbled.

"My wife." Harry said. "We have three kids in total. James Sirius, Albus Severus and Lily Luna."

"I'm sorry." James said. " _Albus Severus_?"

Sirius frowned. "You named your kid after _Snivellus_?" Sirius asked.

"Sirius!" Lily scolded.

"No, it's alright." Harry said calmly. "Snape helped me out quite a bit during the last year of the war."

Remus, Ron and Tonks stared at him in confusion.

"Harry, he killed Dumbledore." Ron said. "You must be barmy."

"He did _what_?" James demanded.

"Sev killed Albus?" Lily asked, her eyes wide.

"But you named your son _Albus Severus_?" Tonks asked. "That's-"

"Bloody knew he was a snake!" Sirius said, smacking his hand on the table.

"It's a long story, one I will explain later." Harry said patiently.

"And what happened to Sev? After the war?" Lily asked.

"He was killed by Voldemort." Harry said.

"Snape's dead?" Ron asked.

"Yes." Hermione said. "After you were-uh, killed, we had to find where Voldemort was and find the last Horcrux-"

"The last _what_?" Remus asked.

"We'll explain later." Harry responded. "We found Voldemort in the boat house. He ordered Nagini to kill Snape, because he thought Snape was master of the Elder Wand."

"Wasn't he?" Ron asked, frowning.

Harry shook his head. "Draco was, and when I disarmed Draco- I was."

"I'm sorry, the Elder Wand?" Tonks asked.

"From the story?" Colin said. "The Tale of the Three Brothers, right?"

"Those are kids' stories." Tonks said.

"The objects given to the brothers are real. The cloak, the stone and the wand. I still have the cloak." Harry said, with a grin to James.

"My cloak was-"

"A Deathly Hallow, yes." Harry responded. "And Dumbledore had the Elder Wand until he died, and Draco disarmed Dumbledore- it was Draco's."

"And the stone?" Ron asked. "Maybe that's why we're back."

"Oh!" Hermione said, jumping up and picking up a roll of parchment. "Now that we're back at that topic, I found a book earlier."

"Of course you did." Ron commented.

Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron. "It's very Dark Magic, similar to Inferi-"

"According to you, though, those aren't very dark at all." Harry mumbled. Hermione turned to him, smacking him on the head with the roll of parchment in her hand.

"Honestly, you two have not changed. At least Ron has an excuse!" Hermione said.

"Alright, what did you find?" Harry asked.

"It's similar to Inferi." Hermione repeated, giving Harry a dirty look. "The person that raises the dead has control of those they bring back. Which would have explained how all of you looked when you first arrived."

"How did we look?" James asked.

"Well..." Hermione said. "Dead."

"Dead, how?" Sirius asked.

"Well, you all looked like yourselves. But your eyes were blank, it was quite creepy." Hermione said. "But this spell, it loses its strength if the controller lets the dead get near familiar people or places- which, you all have been around both. And from what we saw with Sirius' reaction to seeing Harry the first time yesterday, you were all supposed to target him."

"Wait, what did I do yesterday?" Sirius asked.

"You tried to strangle me, and Remus helped." Harry explained.

"You tried to strangle Harry _Potter_." Tonks said to Remus. "Wasn't cursing him enough?"

"Wait, _what_?" James demanded.

"Well, Tonks, _you_ tried to break Dawlish's arm." Harry said.

"Good." Tonks said. "We can consider it pay back for the time he _actually_ broke mine."

Harry frowned slightly "Hermione, is there a way to find who did this?"

Hermione shook her head. "Nothing we can do, anyway. We have to rely on if anyone here remembers anything." She said, and then glanced at the parchment. "There is just one problem."

"What's that?" Harry asked.

"Harry, the spell isn't meant to be permanent."


	8. Chapter 8

**_I've had this idea for quite a while. It's kind of lame, but why not?_**

* * *

"What do you mean, it's not meant to be permanent?" Remus asked.

"No spell can raise the dead." Hermione said slowly. "Not permanently, anyway."

Harry exhaled. "You said it's not _meant_ to be permanent. Maybe we can find something make it so." He said simply.

"Harry..." Hermione said.

"Let's focus on what's in front of us right now, Hermione." Harry said. "I have a few questions, and then we should go over to St Mungo's, and then to Grimmauld."

"Teddy's there, right?" Tonks asked eagerly.

"Not today, he's not." Harry said, and Remus and Tonks looked disappointed. "I still have to sit and my kids down to discuss the situation. So, he's over at the Burrow until tomorrow with Molly and Arthur. I'll go over tomorrow morning, to explain the situation to them and Teddy, and James. Al is still young enough that he won't even remember anything that I have said about any of you. James might only remember the basics, but he might know enough to be confused. I'll explain it to Arthur and Molly, Hermione can talk to Fred and George and Angelina and their kids. Hopefully Molly and Arthur can get in touch with Charlie, but they'll talk to Bill and Percy at least. And that would cover your family, Ron, and them knowing you're back. Tonks, for your mother- that won't be an easy situation."

"Nothing with my mother is easy, Harry."

"Yeah, I've learned that. I figure, possibly, the best course of action would be to just show her. Have her come over, just show her."

"That might not be too smart, either." Tonks said. "She likes to curse first, ask questions later."

"Good to know where you got that." Remus mumbled, receiving a dirty look from Tonks.

"Right." Harry said. "We'll figure something out, then. Mum, Aunt Petunia's still alive but that's up to you if you want to see her again or not."

Lily looked a little uncomfortable. "I'm not sure." She said. "We didn't exactly get along for a while there."

"Right. Like I said, up to you." Harry said. "Dad, you don't-"

"I figured my folks would be gone." James said. "They were kind of old.''

"Colin, we'll send an owl to find you brother and your parents, they actually moved to America a few years ago." Harry continued. "Remus, you-"

"I didn't have family left. Maybe some cousins, but no one close." Remus responded.

Harry exhaled and nodded. "Sirius, you've got the Malfoys and Andromeda. I can already guess that you don't want to see the Malfoys."

"You're damn right I don't." Sirius responded. "Although, I'm not too sure on seeing Andy again, she can't have gotten sweeter with age."

"So, we're going to have a more thorough conversation with reuniting you with the rest of your families. Obviously, Ron's will be easy." Harry said. "But, I also realise we can't have your families seeing you... looking as you currently do."

"What do you mean?" Lily asked.

"Well... How can I say this nicely?" He asked, looking at Hermione.

"Well..." Hermione started slowly. "You don't look... _well._ The idea that the dead have returned- that alone will freak people out. You're wearing the clothes you were all buried in- with the exception of Sirius, who wasn't buried _at all_. And quite frankly, anyone who does know _any of you_ is going to expect someone older, not these versions of you."

"To be fair, I think they'll expect us to be dead." James said, shrugging.

"And you _definitely_ look like you've crawled out of your own graves- again, except for Sirius, who had no grave." Hermione said.

"Right, anyway, Ginny has robes and clothes that will fit Mum and Tonks. For the rest of you, however. My clothes might fit you, Dad. _Possibly_ Remus. They'll be too long for you, Sirius, and Colin for sure. Ron, I might have something for you."

"Fred might have something that will fit Sirius, I'll look when I get home." Hermione said. "They'll be better for Colin as well."

"We'll go back to Grimmauld, we'll organise things a bit, and go from there. But first, I do have to ask some of you about when you died. So," Harry began uncertainly, staring around them. "I need to ask if any of you remembers anything now. Anything new. Anything I wouldn't have known."

"Like what?" Tonks asked. "We don't know what you know."

"Okay, uh, I know how Ron died. I know how Sirius died, and Mum and Dad. I don't know how you, Remus or Colin died." Harry said. "Let's start there. How did it feel? When it happened?"

''I remember pain." Colin said. "Even though it was a Killing Curse, it really hurt- I thought those were painless."

"They are." Harry said. "They should be."

"I felt pain too." Tonks said, looking at Colin. "It lasted for a long time, it wasn't-"

"Instantaneous." Colin finished. "Like it was supposed to be. Kind of like someone was-"

"Tearing your chest apart?" Tonks asked. Colin nodded.

"It only stopped when-"

"-when you woke up." Tonks finished. Colin nodded again.

Harry looked between them. "Right. The rest of you. Do you remember pain?" Harry asked. "Ron? Mum? Dad? Anything?"

"Mate, I was crushed by a wall." Ron said. "I definitely felt it."

James and Lily exchanged looks. "We didn't feel anything. It _was_ instantaneous for us." Lily said. "Remus?"

"I wasn't hit with a Killing Curse." Remus said. "I figured the pain was from that."

"What was it, then?" Harry asked, frowning. They had all said death was painless- but not Remus. Remus had said _"And he will want it to be quick. He wants it over."-_ had Remus suffered?

"Dolohov's creation, the one he tried to use on Hermione." Remus explained. "It felt like my chest was getting ripped open, almost like 6 months of transformations at one moment."

It was silent for a long moment.

"I didn't feel a thing." Sirius said. "Just... nothing."

Harry nodded. "So the only ones that felt anything were those of you that died at the final battle, and two of those were Killing Curses."

"Did anyone else hear the voice?" Ron asked. Everyone turned to look at him. "You know, the voice saying to kill Harry."

Remus, Tonks and Colin were the only ones who nodded.

"You three didn't?" Harry asked his parents and Sirius. They shook their heads. "Maybe there's a reason for that."

"And we came up on the eleventh anniversary of their deaths." Sirius added. "Specifically, _their_ deaths. Why not eleven years to James and Lily's deaths, or eleven to mine? Why May 2nd?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't know. We have to find the person who was controlling you at first. Perhaps whoever it was couldn't do it eleven years from Mum and Dad's deaths. Maybe they didn't plan this until after the war."

"I have a different question." Tonks said. "How did Sirius come back?"

"The same way as the rest of you, I suppose." Harry said, frowning.

"No, Harry, there was no body." Tonks said. "His body was lost to the veil. We had no body to bury. So how did they bring Sirius back?"

"How did they bring back the rest of you properly? Eleven years buried, and none of you looked it. In Mum and Dad's cases, twenty eight years buried, and they don't look it. I think, first, we need to go to St Mungos, talk to Healers- make sure you're all alright. Then, we need to just go to Grimmauld. And make our next move from there."

"Harry." Tonks interrupted. "Did anyone else come back? Other than us?"

Harry looked at her, and after a moment spoke again. "Your father didn't come back, Tonks, I'm sorry."

Tonks nodded slowly, looking down at her lap. "Of course, no, I was just hoping."

"We do have to figure out what to do about full moon." Remus said after a moment. "When is it?"

"Uh..." Harry began. He honestly had no clue if it was five days or seven days still.

"Five days." Hermione responded.

Remus frowned. "That can't be right."

Hermione tilted her head at him. "It's right, Remus." She said. "Why do you say that?"

"Because I don't feel like I usually do." Remus said quietly.


End file.
